


The Future of Babylon

by DesertVixen



Category: Nantucket Trilogy - S.M. Stirling
Genre: F/M, some day my fic will come
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-04
Updated: 2015-10-04
Packaged: 2018-04-24 16:56:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,321
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4927651
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DesertVixen/pseuds/DesertVixen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kashtiliash's thoughts about what the future might bring for Nantucket and Babylon.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Future of Babylon

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Trobadora](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Trobadora/gifts).



Kathryn was unlike any other woman he had ever met. He had once thought that she had the soul of a man, but over time he had been convinced that she possessed the soul of a lioness instead. Fate had not only given him a second chance to write his own history, but had also given him a woman who could do more than warm his bed. 

Her spirit had called to his, in a bond that was more than physical attraction – although they had no lack of that. Kashtiliash knew there were those who thought he was bewitched, that Kathryn was using what lay between her legs to lure him into betraying Babylon. They could not understand that he intended to make Babylon a true power, one that the other powers would have to reckon with.

He intended to make Babylon a power that would last.

Kashtiliash had offered to make Kathryn queen not because he was thinking with his loins, but because he knew that having that kind of link to the Islanders would be useful. That he loved her made the decision easier, but if he was honest, Kashtiliash knew that he would have done whatever was needed to achieve his goal.

Only a fool whose alliance was worthless trusted an ally completely. The Islanders might have their soft spots and strange ways, but they were not foolish. Babylon had been a valuable ally in the fight against Walker. Kashtiliash intended to ensure that Babylon remained a valuable ally. He had sworn an oath by his father and his gods, that his people would not be left poor, ignorant, and powerless. Kathryn had sworn to help him as much as she could. 

His father had understood that Babylon must not become dependent on Nantucket, a lesson that Kashtiliash intended to teach his sons as well – even if they were half-Islanders. Kashtiliash had enjoyed seeing Nantucket for himself, even it had made him more painfully aware of how backward Babylon was by Nantucket standards. It was one thing to see the Islanders who lived in Babylon – they didn’t precisely blend in, but neither were they trying to drastically change the society. There had been changes, and he intended to make more changes, changes that he would control.

Seeing the wonders of Nantucket had been worth the long sea voyage. It was one thing to march to the sea, but another entirely to spend days without seeing any land. Kashtiliash had been very happy to set his feet on solid ground again. It had been a very educational trip – not just seeing the mechanical marvels and knowledge so advanced it was practically magic, such as Kathryn’s device that allowed her to avoid pregnancy when it would be inconvenient, but meeting the people. He accepted that the people who came to Babylon were attempting to portray a certain image, but he knew that it was impossible to get an entire society to play along with the game. 

It had been an interesting experience. They had also traveled to what the Nantucketers called the mainland, which he had found to be somewhat reassuring – at least there was space for the people on the Island to expand, much closer than his own kingdom.

It had also been pleasant to have time alone with Kathryn, away from his advisors and nobles and all the court hangers-on. Even if he could not forget the duties of kingship, he could still take that time to simply be a man alone with the woman he loved and desired. They had taken an unofficial trip to Long Island, to visit the farm her brother owned. That had been interesting as well, seeing her and Kenneth Hollard in a more relaxed atmosphere, with no one treating him like a king. It did not escape his notice that Kenneth Hollard and Raupasha’s visit had only overlapped their own by a day, something that he appreciated. It was not that he was ungrateful to the young woman for her bravery and her service, but there was no denying that she had been a complication at times.

He chose to believe that his heir had been made on that trip, on a moonlit beach with the ocean crashing in the distance. It seemed fitting, for a son who would have to deal with both worlds.

### 

Justin Clemens enjoyed his downtime life, but when it came to medicine, there were definitely things that he missed. The Islanders had been able to accomplish a lot of good by introducing and enforcing sanitation measures, but he had a long list of things that he wished they could somehow replace.

Right now, as he looked at a very pregnant Kathryn Hollard – the Lady of the Land – the item at the top of his wish list was an ultrasound machine.

More weight gained than was usually considered normal – in a society without all the bad food choices they’d learned to do without.

An overly active baby.

He really did not want to think about the possibility that Kathryn might not have a successful pregnancy and delivery – not when she was literally carrying the future of Babylon in her body. 

“Is everything all right?” Kathryn’s voice, sounding a little worried, interrupted his reverie.

“Yes, everything looks good.” He paused for a moment, then moved so that he was out of her reach, just in case she didn’t respond well to the next question. “Is there any history of twins in your family, by chance?”

### 

He thought of Kathryn as a golden lioness. She was sleek and deadly, as fierce as the animal that had become her symbol in Babylon.

Having two babies at the breast did nothing to change that. 

It was not that he had never seen one of his children hungrily nursing at their mother’s breast, but somehow it was different knowing that this son would one day sit on his throne. 

He knew there would be a next time. Although one of Walker’s henchmen had done a good job of removing possible heirs, they now knew that at least one of his children was not included among the dead, and that one of Walker’s earliest followers was also missing. They had to assume that there would be another threat – if not from Walker’s offspring, then from another source. It was not a peaceful world.

But now – right now – it was peaceful, and he could let himself simply be a father, admiring the two healthy babies cradled in their mother’s arms. 

Kathryn opened her eyes and smiled at him. “Kash.” Her hair, long enough now to brush her shoulders, framed her face. He knew it would have to be cut the next time she took to the field to lead men in battle, but for now he would enjoy it.

He bent to kiss her, then gently ran his fingers along his son’s cheek, then his daughter’s. “How are they?”

“Hungry, as usual,” Kathryn said with a grin. 

He grinned as well. It had been a surprise when Kathryn told him that Justin Clemens suspected she was pregnant with twins. So far, their first week had gone well, and Kathryn had not killed anyone during the parade of important members of the court through the royal bed-chamber – a fact he appreciated. 

Kashtiliash watched as his son, Shuriash, let the nipple fall from his mouth, clearly satisfied. 

“Do you want to take him?” Kathryn asked, as she touched a hand to their daughter’s head. “Nina is still hungry.”

He took Shuriash, resting the baby against his shoulder as Justin Clemens had demonstrated, and enjoyed the peace of the moment. It was hard to believe that one day, he would have to send this child to Nantucket, as his arrangement with Kathryn required.

_One day_ , he thought, _you will stand in my shoes, my son._

He wondered what the relationship between Babylon and Nantucket would look like then.

**Author's Note:**

> I finally did it!
> 
> I hope you enjoy this NYR, and that it scratches all your Kashtiliash-related itches! Numerous references, of course, to events and characters in both books (Against the Tide of Years, On the Oceans of Eternity) from Kash's POV.
> 
> The whole idea of them having twins comes from the fact that for some reason, I was thinking that Kenneth and Kathryn Hollard were twins. Not sure exactly why, now, other than the prevalence of fighting twins/pairs in Stirling's work, but the idea translated down to Kathryn having twins.


End file.
